Berkeley Voters To Decide Whether To Initiate Public Bank With New Parcel Tax Authored by Lear Zhou via The Epoch Times , Voters in Berkeley, California, will decide in the coming election whether to start a public bank using a new parcel tax as seed money in order to create long-term investments in affordable housing, green energy, and small businesses.
Public banking is on the ballot in Berkeley! Measure Z would fund Public Bank East Bay through a six-year parcel tax, projected to raise $9M+ in its first year, the largest single investment in a regional bank. — CA Public Banking Alliance (@capublicbanking) August 26, 2026 The public bank, as a nonprofit corporation engaging in commercial or industrial banking business, would be "wholly owned by a local agency, local agencies, or a joint powers authority" of local agencies, according to the measure text.